The Cultural Symptom Under The Environment Of New Media

Chinese modern media environment is considered as the basic cultural context in this thesis. Cultural study is used as methodology on the research of children’s childhood. This dissertation mainly focuses on the social’s role on children’s childhood under the situation of media in the current.This research puts childhood and children culture phenomenon together in the modern media environment for some reasons. First, media is everywhere today, it plays an important role in the modern society; second, the development of "media society" has an important influence on some aspects including children’s problem. Therefore examining the problems of childhood and children under the modern media environment also means examining the modern developing trajectory of childhood by choosing a whole-part perspective.Childhood issues mentioned in this dissertation can be summarized into the fate of children in contemporary China under the modern media environment. Media environment, as a great social space and huge social forces, will create huge effects on children and their childhood. These have been happening automatically. But some sayings such as "childhood completely disappeared" make me notice the negative impact of media. Thus, the main content of this dissertation is to study how adult’s media plays a negative role on children’s childhood and to explore what could bring positive effect to children’s growth. Meanwhile, how we should treat children and their childhood is also discussed in the dissertation.This dissertation starts with the actual concern for the childhood and problems of children in the introduction. Based on a literature review on the related references, the problem and innovation are put forward in the first part. In the following part, more detailed analysis is promoted during the specific expansion after a wide viewing angle. In Chapter2, contextualized empirical research analysis is used to explain the problems in childhood and phenomenon of children in media narration. The influence of the modern media on children’s childhood is also described in this chapter.In Chapter3and4, the dissertation discusses how modern media affects children’s life with typical cases. Through the investigation of cultural products for children in the modern media environment, the research analyzes how these products lead to the crisis on childhood. Based on the above, in Chapter5, through the critique of the media environment and consumer society, the dissertation analyzes the boom of children and children in the Period of the May4movement, and dissects the reasons why modern media could influence children and their childhood. Then, the dissertation turns to children’s self-culture created with the help of modern media and talks about the relationship between adult’s culture and children’s culture. A new possibility of the development for children’s childhood in the modern society is pointed out in this part.In the end, the dissertation proposes that facing the childhood crisis, maybe we(adult) don’t know what are the best practices, but we should avoid the bad behavior which might hurt children’s childhood. A new "children-oriented" conception should be established to allow the children to choose and develop by themselves. So human society can realize sustainable development.